Waterline Reflection

I cut forward throttle at the perimeter threshold where cracked runway asphalt met packed red soil. A shallow rainwater basin sat mirror-still under the cooling night sky. Creeping to the wet margin, I flicked on my auxiliary hood lights. The twin beams punched straight into the dark pool, illuminating floating seed pods and reflecting my reinforced front bumper back with crisp optical clarity. An evening gust cut across the apron, fracturing the reflection into ripples while my rooftop anemometer spun three brisk rotations. Data logged. Suspension locked into rigid park for the night.